GT60 and raid configurations (Can you disable that and how?)

Hey guys, I'm returning my Sager 9130 due to defective hardware and some very questionable keyboard layout designs, and the machine I'm looking into most is the GT60.

I'm seeing that it comes standard with Raid0 enabled, but Raid configurations have a high chance of failing.

I don't mind a bit slower HDD speed for 1/2 the chance of failure in them so I'm wondering if it's possible to run them as 2 separate HDDs and still get the 1TB of storage?

If so, how?

 

If you're configuring a GT60 online (with a reseller), just select the disable raid option or ask to disable raid in your order

 

As stated, resellers can disable RAID in configuration. If you wish to, you should also be able to do it yourself by changing it in the BIOS.
Simply tap the Delete key on boot up to get to the BIOS options and navigate to the Advanced tab and highlight RAID and press Enter, a menu comes up with the options for AHCI and IDE along with RAID.

It is generally recommended to run in AHCI if you don't plan on running in RAID configuration.

After switching out of RAID you will have to re-install the OS and the drivers.

I believe you may also have to use Ctrl-I to access the RAID configuration prior to switching out of RAID to break the drives out of the RAID before switching out in the BIOS.

 

All you need to really do is break the raid in the Intel configuration utility upon startup. During post just hit ctrl+i and hit option "3", I believe, which says "convert to non-raid". It will warn you that all data stored on the current raid will be lost. However, just continue and then hit F11 for the recovery partition. Do a full restore and the laptop should have a disabled raid. You don't need to change the BIOS setting to ACHI because having it set in raid will inherit the same features as ACHI. Hey, this is a fresh build anyway, so if you screw it up there is no data to be worried about.

Good luck!

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

 

Thanks for the help, everyone. I actually plan on buying from newegg unless one of the other online retailers offers a free Xbox with it as well

Not sure if Newegg would make that adjustment to not use RAID.

 

I just purchased the GT60 and had the same concerns about RAID0, so I switched to RAID1 for the peace of mind.

It's pretty easy really:

1. Create recovery discs using the MSI burn utility
2. Leave BIOS alone if you intend to use RAID1
3. Enter the RAID configuration utility (shift F10 I think ... but the boot screens will tell you)
4. Kill the existing array
5. Create a new RAID1 array
6. Run the MSI burn recovery utility from the discs created in the first step

 

You MUST break an array before exiting raid mode to prevent issues if you intend to then use the drives out of raid mode.

However remember raid 1 does not protect against a lot of issues and it is probably much safer to keep raid0 and have an external backup.

 

You are right. But you can still use raid mode in the BIOS without an actual raid. ACHI is typically for a single drive setup. These models have two drives, so I would leave the BIOS setting as raid no matter what. It still utilizes ACHI and can develop a raid for future use.

And using raid 0 can degrade the life of your drives a lot faster. Also, if on fails the entire array (2 drives) are lost. If you're going with an SSD, it will smoke a raid 0 regardless.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

 

Really, degrade the life span? Maybe of the second drive, but if operations complete faster then the drives can get to idle faster.

If your laptop gets a virus, gets stolen or destroyed then raid 1 wont helpbyou either.

 

What is your point? It is a known fact that a raid 0 can decrease the life span of the drives. Yes, it is faster because the array is striped, but it depends on what the user wants. If one fails, all data is lost. A raid 1 is a contingency plan. One drive fails, and the array is still safe because it is mirrored.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

 

My main concern is not data, it's just keeping the drives alive for as long as possible. Since I'm told Raid0 will decrease the life span of the drives, I would simply prefer to use them as two regular drives.

 

Raid 1 is what reduces drive lifespan the most.

 

I know the super raid GT60 is not out yet, but will raid 0 msatas plus the regular HDD drain alot of battery as well?

 

If you use them all at the same time sure, but that situation is unlikely.

SSDs complete tasks quicker meaning they are not draining the battery for as long. Also if you are doing stuff other parts will be more power consuming.

 

I am a whole lot less concerned about drives failing eventually, as compared to drives failing unexpectedly and taking my data down with them. Really, if either drive in this laptop fails in 5 years or if it fails in 7 years, my response will be exactly the same: buy a new laptop and move on.

 

That's a silly way to operate.

A hard drive WILL fail, it's only a matter of time. In practically every machine a hard drive is an easy straight swap with another and with external image backups its simply a case of replacing the drive and imaging it and carrying on.

 

If a drive fails unexpectedly in 2 or 3 years, then I would absolutely replace what broke and keep on using the laptop.

Five years or more? Not so much.

 

A 5 year old laptop today would have a core 2 duo in it and still be relevant for any tasks.

A fresh battery and even a really cheap cpu upgrade would still produce a very capable machine.

 

I don't plan on using it as raid one. All I'd like to do is use them as if they're just regular drives and get the 1TB out of them.

 

I'm looking to get rid of Raid0 on my gt60. It's my first laptop and I'm a novice user. Can someone please walk me through all the steps in this process in very simple English. My laptop has 2 HDDs instead of SSDs. Thanks

 

1. Make copies of any important files
2. Run the MSI "Burn Recovery" utility to make a series of recovery disks
3. Hit F10 (I think) during startup to enter the raid config utility
4. Select the option for no raid to break the array apart
5. Restart the machine
6. Use the Burn Recovery disks to restore your Windows instance
7. If Burn Recovery only seems to want to restore a "fresh" Windows instance and not your existing files, you'll be really glad you made copies as suggested in step 1

You're done.

 

Thanks for the help! I successfully got raid0 off, but now I have another problem: my computer doesn't seem to recognize the 2nd HDD, if I go to My Computer, I see: OS_Install (C 209GB free of 272GB and Data (D 181 free of 181. I know I have 2 HDDs with around 500GB on them, but I can't access the second disk. Is there a driver I can download or is there a different solution?
Thanks

 

In BIOS setup, make sure you have SATA mode set to AHCI and not RAID. In the RAID config utility, make sure you have chosen the "reset to non-raid" (or something like that) option.

Once the machine has booted into windows, run the Intel Rapid Storage utility and check that both drives appear and have volumes assigned to them.

 

Click on the Start orb in Windows and type "Disk Management" and it should bring up the "Create and format hard disk partitions" and hit Enter or click on it.

Once in there, click the box to maximize the window so you can view your hard drives better.

The 3 disk recovery set, if you used that, likely created 2 partitions on the C: drive to make it look like 2 different drives. I have no idea why MSI does this other than to confuse people.
right-click on the data partition (D: and select "Delete Volume" and accept the warning.

Next, click on your C: drive and select Expand volume, just accept the defaults and you should now have your proper C: drive back.

After this, you should also note another long block with a black stripe across the top showing an "unallocated partition". Right-click on this and select, create new volume or create new simple volume. Go through the process accepting all defaults and it should now recognize your second 500GB HDD.